American Experiment, The: Steps Toward a Constitutional Democracy
In the 19th century British Prime Minister Gladstone called the American Constitution "the most remarkable work in modern times produced by the human intellect at a single stroke." Historian Bernard Bailyn agrees that ou..
American Experiment, The: Three-fifths Compromise, The
The separate economic interests of the northern and southern states became the basis for a second major debate. Would slaves who could not vote be counted as part of the population in determining the size of a state's re..
American Experiment, The: Two Roads to Philadelphia
Two sets of issues led to convention in Philadelphia: the weakness of the Articles of Confederation and the problems individual states were experiencing. When the Annapolis convention did not attract a quorum, a general ..
American Experiment, The: Will the Philadelphia Convention Attract a Quorum?
As the Convention neared, George Washington's involvement in the proceedings was uncertain. His presence would be a real political asset, Madison knew, but the general would not be happy if the convention attracted too f..
American Heritage: A Nation of Nations
The Framers of the Constitution excluded many people from active participation in the newly-created government, but the fact that the language of the Constitution they created was inclusive, provided the opening for excl..
American Heritage: Americans Linked by Ideals, Not Ancestry
Ideals rather than common ancestry serve as the basis of the common identity Americans share. Many of these ideals--belief in the autonomy of the individual, limited government that depends on the consent of the governed..
American Heritage: Building on Historic Origins
American politics today--complex, forceful, and sometimes confusing--can only be understood against the backdrop of the nation's heritage. "Europeans often think of us as historically shallow, " notes Bernard Bailyn, bu..
American Heritage: Conflict and Political Discourse
Politics is more than the pursuit of shared ideals. It is the way that a society makes its governing decisions. Two major sources of disagreement dominate the political stage: conflict over distribution of scarce resourc..
American Heritage: Distinctions Between the Public and Private Sectors
Another defining characteristic of the American system is the relatively sharp distinction between what is political and should be decided in the public arena, and what is economic and should be controlled by the private..
American Heritage: Government of the People
The American political system must respond to competing interests that result from the nation's size, diversity and economic complexity, and yet it remains the most stable, continuous political system in the world As Rob..